Does wrinkle correction change the image you project to others? Surgeons at the Chicago Center for Facial Plastic Surgery sought to answer that question in a recent paper published in Dermatologic Surgery.

Many studies have evaluated the physical results achieved with HA fillers like Restylane and Juvederm, but very few have documented the way other people perceive these cosmetic changes.

Using injections of hyaluronic acid filler, doctors fully corrected the nasolabial folds on 22 patients. To determine how treatment affected first impressions, they showed pictures of the patients to 304 people as blinded evaluators. They asked the evaluators about categories such as attractiveness, athletic ability, financial success, relationships and overall first impression.

“Significance was observed in all categories measured,” the authors conclude; “full correction of the NLFs with HA filler significantly and positively influences the first impression an individual projects.”

Funding and materials for the study were provided by Medicis, maker of Restylane. You can read the abstract or purchase access to this study on PubMed